CM In Delhi: DGP, 14(F) On Agenda

A busy schedule awaits Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy who left for New Delhi on Wednesday evening. He is expected to meet UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, and Congress In-Charge of Andhra Pradesh Affairs Ghulam Nabi Azad, among other VIPs.

Among his engagements, a discussion on the progress on the deletion of Clause 14 F from the Presidential Order of 1975 with the Union Home Minister P Chidambaram tops the charts.

Deputy Chief Minister C Damodar Rajanarasimha, who is already camping in New Delhi, is understood to have met the Congress leaders, and is expected to join the Chief Minister's retinue.

Meanwhile, Director General of Police K Aravinda Rao, retires from service on Thursday, told media persons in the Secretariat, in reply to a question over his successor, "Ask the government, how can I say."

Currently 3 names have been doing the rounds.

Home Secretary Goutham Kumar, former Hyderabad Commissioner of Police Dinesh Reddy, and another senior contender Balwinder Singh, who served for some time in New Delhi recently, and senior IAS officer K R Nandan are said to be among the top of the list for the state police chief's job.

It may be recalled that Goutham Kumar had moved the Central Administrative Tribunal earlier, which also gave a ruling in his favour, but sources here are tight-lipped over the issue.

It is not clear whether the Chief Minister would choose the name of Aravinda Rao's successor from New Delhi. This is one of the subjects weighing high on his agenda.

Besides these 2 issues, the expansion of the Cabinet, berths for Praja Rajyam Party leaders and its president K Chiranjeevi, and the declaration of Polavaram and Pranahitha-Chevella projects as National Projects are other issues likely to come up for discussion there. (INN)